NASA Glenn Research Center’s Post

Prioritizing health is important on Earth, and it’s even more important in space. Exploring beyond the Earth’s surface exposes humans to conditions that can impact blood pressure, bone density, immune health, and much more. With this in mind, two NASA inventors joined forces 20 years ago to create a way to someday monitor astronaut heart […] | Click below to read the full article on Sunalei

So fascinating to observe the impact of heart tissue in space and the potential dual applications for space exploration. Research reveals that heart tissue samples spending 30 days at the International Space Station (ISS) displayed weakened tissues and disrupted rhythmic beats under low gravity conditions, contrasting with earth-bound samples. This finding holds crucial implications for the cardiovascular health of astronauts during extended space missions. #SpaceExploration #CardiovascularHealth #ResearchDiscovery

This is 'why' you need #CTPcraft and CTP Space Systems for #deepspace travel. Inside of the T-manifold of a #CTPcraft you'll have your own natural internal gravity environment effectively 'isolated' from local spacetime around one's craft via C-domain. In layman's terms... no 'low gravity' inside your CTP spacecraft. CONVINCING PEOPLE IS A WASTE OF TIME It really is. So how about this... all of the #StarTrek, #Jetsons, and next level space YOU WANT a spacecraft to deliver with your current space paradigm... just is NOT possible. Even Elon's approaches will not work in the long run. How about that? (https://lnkd.in/eRyNsmdV) #newscience #propulsion #spacetravel #CTPSpace

Skeletal muscles overcome terrestrial gravity by generating tensile forces that enable movement through joint rotation. However, the microgravity of spaceflight 🚀 reduces these tensile loads, leading to muscle atrophy. Developing stable, physiological bioreactors to simulate skeletal muscle loading during spaceflight experiments presents significant challenges. In one recent study, scientists tested a bioreactor designed to induce hypertrophy and atrophy in murine 🐁 (C2C12) skeletal muscle myotubes through cyclic tensile strain. Using a StrexCell® (STB-1400) stepper motor system (0.75 Hz, 12% strain, 60 min/day), myotube groups were either left quiescent for 2 or 5 days, subjected to 2 or 5 days of cyclic stretch, or stretched for 2 days followed by 3 days of rest. Their findings revealed significant increases in myotube diameter following the stretching periods, with notable hypertrophy markers elevated after 2 days of stretching. However, markers of inflammation and catabolism were significantly higher when stretching ceased 😮 These results highlight the potential of such a bioreactor to model muscle changes in #space, offering valuable insights for future spaceflight research. Please see the full text article published under SOMA right here -> https://lnkd.in/e576VcyV Texas A&M University NASA GeneLab

Monitoring the health of humans hundreds of kilometres above the Earth 🌏 and in the infinite space beyond is a major challenge in the complex microgravitational environment of space. Australia’s own population, dispersed across a vast geographic landscape, offers a similar challenge to health professionals. The ability to access real time data that could aid in precise diagnosis, predictive assessment, and, consequent treatments during human spaceflight could in turn save lives for those operating in isolated areas such as mining, defence, or those living in remote environments on Earth. Australia is already a world leader in delivering medical care 🏥 to remote regions. This iLAuNCH Trailblazer project will build on this expertise, transferring the capability to predict and monitor physiological changes to human spaceflight. “I applaud Aspen Medical for making the leap into the demanding environment of space, and showcasing how space technology can help us here on Earth. It’s a great project led by The Australian National University, partnering with industry leaders including Saber Astronautics and Liquid Instruments,” said iLAuNCH Trailblazer Executive Director, Darin Lovett. 📸 L-R: Prof Daniel Shaddock, James Stuchbery, Prof Klaus-Martin Schulte, Ben Nizette. #Trailblazers #humanspaceflight #spacemedicine ANU Institute for Space | InSpace | Australia's Economic Accelerator

As new spacecraft and companies enter a new space race, more complex and longer missions are no longer a moonshot. To travel as safely as possible, researchers and innovators are studying how our bodies handle space. 🧑🚀 Explore what is already known in this wonderful and comprehensive Space Omics and Medical Atlas (SOMA)! 🌌 ℹ It includes infographics, articles, and preprints on topics like countermeasures to risks, such as cardiac fibrosis in space travel (by Afshin Beheshti and his team). Our #EUfunded project plans to add to this growing constellation of knowledge with our innovative magneto-acoustic 3D bioprinter. With it, we will fabricate more complex and realistic cardiac models to study how microgravity and radiation affect the heart, and how to protect it. 🛡 💗 https://lnkd.in/ebmXKTUk

Exciting developments on the use of AI to support the human spaceflight and the human right to health in outer space 👏👏👏 #AI #space #health #humanrights

Spaceflight induces significant changes in astronauts' 🧑🚀 immune responses. To better understand this phenomenon, Christopher Mason David Furman JangKeun Kim and others have generated comprehensive single-cell, multi-ome, cell-free RNA (cfRNA), biochemical, and hematology data from the SpaceX Inspiration4 (I4) mission crew. Their analysis revealed alterations in 18 cytokines/chemokines related to inflammation, aging, and muscle homeostasis post-spaceflight. In the I4 single-cell multi-omics data, they also identified a distinct "spaceflight signature" of gene expression characterized by enrichment in oxidative phosphorylation, UV response, immune function, and TCF21 pathways. This signature was validated in independent datasets, including the NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Twins Study, I4 skin spatial transcriptomics, and 817 NASA GeneLab mouse 🐭 transcriptomes. Notably, they observed up-regulation of FOXP3 in T cells, long-term suppression of MHC class I genes, and shifts in infection-related immune pathways associated with microbiome 🧫 changes. This study has uncovered conserved and unique immune disruptions due to spaceflight and outlines potential countermeasures to maintain astronaut health on long-duration missions. See https://lnkd.in/ei6SCzEg for the full text article under SOMA

SPACE4ALL ISS - "A robot surgeon is headed to the ISS to dissect simulated astronaut tissue. It'll be joined by a bunch of equally impressive experiments such as machine learning devices and artificial retina." -..." On Tuesday (Jan. 30), scientists will be sending a slew of innovative experiments to the International Space Station via Northrop Grumman's Cygnus spacecraft. It's scheduled to launch no earlier than 12:07 p.m. ET (1707 GMT) and, if all goes to plan, arrive at the ISS a few days later on Feb. 1. Indeed one of the experiments onboard is a two-pound (0.9-kilogram) robotic device, about as long as your forearm, with two controllable arms that respectively hold a grasper and a pair of scissors. Developed by a company named Virtual Incision, this doctor robot of sorts is built to someday be able to communicate with human doctors on the ground while inserting itself into an astronaut patient to conduct medical procedures with high accuracy. "The more advanced part of our experiment will control the device from here in Lincoln, Nebraska, and dissect simulated surgical tissue on orbit," Shane Farritor, co-founder of Virtual Incision, said during a presentation about Cygnus on Friday. For now, as it's in preliminary stages, it's going to be tested on rubber bands — but the team has high hopes for the future as missions to the moon, Mars and beyond start rolling down the space exploration pipeline. Remote space medicine has become a hot topic during the last few years as space agencies and private space companies lay plans for a variety of future crewed space missions. prototypes. NASA's Artemis Program, for instance, hopes to have boots on the moon in 2026 — plus, that's supposed to pave the way for a day on which humanity can say they've reached the Red Planet. And together, those missions are expected to pave the way for a far future in which humanity embarks on deeper space travel, perhaps to Venus or, if we're really dreaming, beyond the solar system. So to make sure astronauts remain safe in space — an environment they're literally not made to survive in — scientists want to make sure space-based medical treatment sees advancement in tandem with the rockets that'll take those astronauts wherever they're going. "... Space com read & learn more https://lnkd.in/e_AASHeJ

Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) are collaborating on a study of a ‘superbug’, a multidrug-resistant pathogen, discovered on the International Space Station (ISS). This finding has raised ‘health concerns’ for astronauts, with Sunita Williams currently on board the ISS. The research on this pathogen could also have significant applications on Earth. This screengrab from NASA shows astronaut Suni Williams (seated L) and Butch Wilmore (seated R) posing with the crew of the International Space Station (ISS) after the docking of the Boeing Starliner on June 6, 2024. (AFP) Enterobacter bugandensis, a common nosocomial pathogen, has been detected on surfaces within the ISS. “In a new scientific paper funded by an Ames Space Biology grant, Principal Investigator Dr. Kasthuri Venkateswaran of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory strains of the bacterial species Enterobacter bugandensis isolated from the International Space Station (ISS) were studied,” NASA said in its release on April 16 this year. Indian-origin Sunita Williams, 58, embarked on her third space journey on Thursday, June 6, alongside Wilmore, aged 61. This historic event marked the first voyage aboard Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS). Williams serves as the pilot for the flight test, while Wilmore assumes the mission commander role. What are the findings so far? Astronauts face unique health challenges in space due to their altered immune conditions and limited access to medical facilities. The researchers said comprehending the microbial landscape aboard the ISS is crucial to evaluating its impact on astronaut well-being. – “The current study emphasises the critical need to investigate the pathogenic potential of microorganisms in space environments to safeguard astronaut health and mitigate the risks associated with opportunistic pathogens,” news agency PTI quoted IIT-M statement from a release. – Researchers conducted a thorough study to explore the genomic, functional, and metabolic enhancements of multidrug-resistant pathogens, focusing on Enterobacter bugandensis. – The study highlights the urgent need to investigate the pathogenic potential of microorganisms in space environments to protect astronaut health and mitigate risks from opportunistic pathogens. – The research findings offer promising applications in controlled Earth settings, such as hospital intensive care units, where multidrug-resistant pathogens present significant challenges. – Understanding the genomic adaptations of multidrug-resistant E. bugandensis can facilitate the development of targeted antimicrobial treatments. – Insights into the persistence and succession patterns of E. bugandensis in space can guide strategies for managing microbial contamination in closed environments like spacecraft and hospitals, the research said. Why is it a concern in ISS? Another